Wimmen's Comix
Wimmen's Comix, later titled Wimmin's Comix, was an influential all-female underground comics anthology published by Last Gasp from 1972 to 1992, running 17 issues in total. The title proved a launching pad for many cartoonists' careers, and inspired other small-press and self-published titles. History Wimmen's Comix debuted a few years after the publication of the 1970 one-shot (also published by Last Gasp) It Ain't Me Babe, the first American comic book entirely produced by women, and put together by Trina Robbins, the most prolific and influential of the women cartoonists in the underground scene. (It Ain't Me Babe was a feminist newspaper in Berkeley, California.) Many of the creators from the It Ain't Me Babe comic went on to contribute to Wimmen's Comix. The first issue of Wimmen's Comix was edited by musician and artist Patricia Moodian. Originally, the group behind Wimmen's Comix was not an official collective, but rather a few women artists who came together with a common interest to create at least one comic that women could get paid to be in, in a male-dominated comix culture. It was also notable for its revolutionary editorial approach. Terry Richards recalls: : "We decided that we would produce an on-going title of comics by women and that we would function as a collective, a term used rather loosely in those days to mean there would be no leader or editor, but instead a rotating editorship, with everyone contributing their energy to the paperwork and general supportiveness of the group."Wimmen's Comix Lambiek page Each edition was edited by two different women, working together, with lots of feedback from the group, which met regularly in San Francisco, so no one person wielded too much control over the series. In contrast to the "old boys' club" of the male-dominated underground comix, anyone (as long as they were women) was invited to submit work to Wimmen's Comix. Though it covered a wide range of genre and subject matter, Wimmen's Comix focused more than other anthologies of the time on feminist concerns, homosexuality, sex and politics in general, and autobiographical comics. In 1992, for issue #17, the title was changed to Wimmin's Comix following a discussion over the gender politics of words containing "man" or "men". This and other political conflicts within the collective, along with financial difficulties and the increasing availability of other venues for independent female cartoonists, led to the end of the series after that issue. Many underground and alternative female cartoonists launched their careers in the pages of Wimmen's Comix. The series also led to further female-focused titles being launched, including Tits & Clits, Dyke Shorts, Twisted Sisters, and Dynamite Damsels; several of Wimmen's Comix contributors subsequently created comics that appeared in these titles. Cover Gallery wimmenscomics01.jpg|Issue 1 wimmenscomics02.jpg|Issue 2 wimmenscomics03.jpg|Issue 3 wimmenscomics04.jpg|Issue 4 wimmenscomics05.jpg|Issue 5 wimmenscomics06.jpg|Issue 6 wimmenscomics07.jpg|Issue 7 wimmenscomics08.jpg|Issue 8 wimmenscomics09.jpg|Issue 9 wimmenscomics10.jpg|Issue 10 wimmenscomics11.jpg|Issue 11 wimmenscomics12.jpg|Issue 12 wimmenscomics13.jpg|Issue 13 wimmenscomics14.jpg|Issue 14 wimmenscomics15.jpg|Issue 15 wimmenscomics16.jpg|Issue 16 wimmenscomix17.jpg|Issue 17 Contributors First Issue *Michelle Brand *Lora Fountain * Aline Kominsky *Lee Marrs *Patricia Moodian (editor) *Diane Noomin *Sharon Rudahl *Trina Robbins *Shelby Sampson *Janet Wolfe Stanley Later Issues *Lee Binswanger *Barb Brown *M.K. Brown *Dot Bucher *Mary Fleener *Melinda Gebbie *Phoebe Gloeckner *Roberta Gregory *Krystine Kryttre *Caryn Leschen *Carol Lay *Chris Powers *Terry Richards *Leslie Sternbergh *Carol Tyler *Dori Seda *Penny Van Horn External Links *ComicBookDB *Last Gasp store References Category:Publications Category:Underground comix Category:Comic Books Category:Silver Age